Air-check valve for automobile torpedoes



W. DIETER.

AIR CHECK VALVE FOR AUTOMOBILE TORPEDOES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 19, I920.

Patented Nov. 211, 1922.

Fig. 1.

m b 0o oOo a E M W a w w R m m m m V w 1 M 2 g w Q 0 1 A1 90 Mf F 1 .%N1 w W 0 Patented Nov. 21, T9222..-

UNTTET STATES l,l3t,lt Parent cranes,

WILLIAM IDIIETER, 03F BROOKLYN, NEW TUBE, ASBIGNGB T0 VIT'ICLEADEVELMPMENT CQRPORATION, A CURPQEAJIJIUN @F DELAWARE.

AER-CHECK VALVE FUR A'UTQMQBIJLE TUHFEDQES.

Application filed June 19,

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, 11.; 1. Dinner, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing in the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, city andState of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inAir-Check Valves for Automobile Torpedoes, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention provides an improved valve for normally closing the airinlet to the alcohol and water vessels of a torpedo, and automaticallyturning on air to these vessels upon the launching of the torpedo inorder to feed air under moderate pressure above the liquids in thesevessels, whereby to cause a flow of the alcohol and water to thesuperheater.

Valves for this purpose are set forth in patent of F. M. Leavitt, No.1,022,486, dated April 9, 1912, and in patent to W. Dieter, No.1,319,992, dated @ctober 28, 1919. The present invention provides animprovement upon the constructions set forth in said patents.

The nature of the improved construction and its operation will be madeclear with reference to the accompanying drawing, which shows thepreferred embodiment thereof, and in which- Figure 1 is a. fraentaryvertical longitudinal mid-section of the mid-portion of a torpedo,certain parts being arranged to illustrate diagrammatically the pipeconnections' Fig. 2 is a vertical mid-section of the air valve on a larr scale, showing the valve in its normal 0 osed position;

Fig. 3 is a similar section showing the valve open;

Fig. 4: is a fragmentary section showing 7 the valve in the position inwhich it discharges air from the water vessel.

Referrin first to Fig. 1, A indicates the shell or hu 1 of the torpedo,and B a reservoir or flask of compressed air with its separable head B'of usual construction. From this head an outlet pipe at leads to apressure-reducing valve C by which the air pressure in the flask isreduced to a lower and uniform pressure, being the working pressure atwhich the air is fed to the engine or turbine. From the low pressureside of this valve leads a pipe b which extends to 1920. serial Ito.990,1dfl.

the heater or superheater D, and from the latter to ipe c which leads tothe engine or turblne fnot shown) by which the screw propellers aredriven in the well-lmown manner. At some suitable point in the pi e a isintroduced any usual starting valve (shown diagrammatically).

The alcohol and water vessels are commonly constructed in the mannershown, where the outer walls of the air flask are extended rardly as acylindrical portion 03 having a flange to which is attached a disk orhead e constituting thus a container F which is subdivided into twocompartments by a partition H of comparatively thin metal which iscommonly constructed as an annular vessel having a central opening forthe free passage through it of the pipe (1;, and which is supportedwithin the container F in any suitable manner. The outer compartment lis commonly used to hold water, and the inner compartment J contains thealcohol or other combustible liquid. These liquids are fed over into thesuperheater D after the opening of the starting valve, by air pressureadmitted above the liquids in the vessels T and J respectively. To thusadmit air to the tops of these vessels, an air inlet pipe h leads fromany convenient point on the low pressure side of the reducer G, as somesuitable part of the pipe I). This pipe h admits air to a valve L ofnovel construction, from which the air flows by pipes is Z into the topsof the vessels J and it respectively. From the bottoms of these vesselslead pipes j p which conduct the liquids to valves M and P respectively,from which the alcohol is conducted by pipe j to the spray nozzle oratomizer n in the superheater D, and the water is conducted by pipe 11to a similar nozzle 9 in the superheater.

So far as described, with the exception of the valve L, all the partsset forth are common, being a part of the standard Bliss- Leavitttorpedo. For convenience, the same letters of reference are used as inthe aforesaid Patent No. 1,319,992.

Instead of the valves 1L and K, and relief valve T of that patent, thepresent invention substitutes the one valve L which will now bedescribed.

This valve comprises an outer casing 8 preferably of elongatedcylindrical form having at one end an inlet opening 7 and having lateraloutlets 8 and 9 dischar 'ng respectively into lateral branches 18 an 19to which the pipes k and l are coupled. Within the casing or shell 6 isa movable valve or plunger, 10 which has a piston portion 11 for closingthe outlet 8, and a p1ston portion 12 for closing the outlet 9. Thesepiston portions make a suitably close fit with cylindrically-bored seatortions 13, 14 (Fig. 3) for the outlet 8, an 15 for the outlet 9.Between the piston portlons 11 and 12 the valve 10 is externally reducedat 16 to form a neck past which the air may flow.." The valve 10 istubular, being bored out longitudinally for the greater part of itslength, but its piston portion 12 is not bored through. Between itsinlet end and this piston portion, the reduced or neck portion of thevalve plunger is perforated at 17 so that air may flow from its innerhere to reach the outlet 9 when the valve is open, as in Fig.

The valve-receives at one end the pressure of a spring 18 which normallypresses it to its closed'position, as seen in Fig. 2. In this positionit is stopped by abutment against a plunger 20 which normally is heldseated against a shoulder 21 by the pressure of a spring 22' which isstronger than the spring 18. This spring may react against a shoulder ona bushing 23 screwed into the valve casing and having a central openingfor admitting air from the inlet 7. The abutting end of the plunger 20has an opening 24 of smaller diameter than the bore in the plunger 10,so as to constitute a constriction to the flow of air. The valve plunger10 has a stem 25 which passes out through the end of the casing oppositeto the inlet 7. To prevent leakage, a stuffing box 26 is provided. Forconvenience of construction, this stufiing box and the recess in whichthe spring 18 is seated, may be made in a part 60 separate from theremaining portion of the casing 6. The end of the stem 25 is preferablybored out at 27 and screwthreaded, so that a tool or handle may bescrewed in, by which to pull open the valve plunger against the stressof the spring 18 for testing purposes. While the stem 25 might berigidly attached to, or integral with, the plunger 10, it is preferableto make it in a separate piece with its end entering within the pistonportion 12 and socketed therein, and fastened by a pin 28 with a-slightdegree of looseness, so that extreme nicety of finish and alignment arenot required.

The preferred construction having been thus explained, the operationwill now be described:

Normally, or before the torpedo is started, the valve is closed as shownin Fig. 2, the spring 18 holding the valve plunger 10 pressed againstthe abutment afl'orded by the aaseme pressure displaces the plunger 10and carries it to the position shown in Fig. 3, so that its pistonportion 11 opens wide the outlet 8, and its piston portion 12 passesbeyond the seat 15 and opens the outlet 9. This admits air first, ormore copiously through outlet 8 and tube is to the alcohol chamber J;and secondly, or less copiously, through the outlet 9 and tube Z to thewater vessel I, thereby establishing air pressures above the liquids inthese vessels and instituting the normal outflow of these liquids to thesuperheater. By reason of the slight check to the flow of air, due toits having to traverse the perforations 17 and flow through the annularspace between the seat 15 and the neck 16, the air is slightly retardedin its flow to the water vessel, and its pressure slightly diminished,in order that the alcohol may receive the pressure ahead of the waterand thus commence its discharge from the spray nozzle n before the waterbegins to spray from the nozzle 9, whereby to insure proper ignition ofthe fuel in the superheater. Any suitable way of constricting orretarding the flow of air to the water vessel, as compared with itsadmission to the fuel vessel, will suflice to attain this result.

During the normal run of the torpedo the parts remain in the positionshown in Fig. 3, the valve plunger 10 being arrested by the seating ofits piston 12 against a shoulder or abutment 29 in the casing, thespring 18 being held compressed. At the end of the run, or as soon asthe air pressure is spent, the spring 18 presses the valve "plunger backto its original position, being stopped by its striking the plunger 20.I

It sometimes happens that a pressure of air exists in the water oralcohol vessels which it is desirable to relieve. -This may happen byleakage of the highly compressed anaemia sure displaces the plunger 10and spring plunger 20 to the right, as shown in Fig. 4:,

so that it may escape to the inlet 7 and thence through pipes 72. I)through the superheater to the exhaust of the engine. The same movementof the valve plunger opens a vent to the opening 8 communicatin with thealcohol-vessel, whereby to establish a balance of pressures in thealcohol vessel such as will guard against any collapse of the shell orpartition H.

It is customary, in valves of this character, to provide a constrictionfor momentarily checking the first rush of air when the startingvalve isopened, which, if not held back, might burst the alcohol vessel if thepressure therein preponderated, or might collapse this vessel if thepressure in the water vessel were the higher. In the present valve thisconstriction is provided by the reduced opening 24 in the stop plunger20.

The valve afforded by the present invention thus performs the severalfunctions required to control the proper admission of air to the alcoholand water vessels upon the starting of the torpedo, while relieving anydangerous pressure that may occur when the torpedo is out of service.These functions are performed by a single valve, thereby simplifyin themechanism, while at the same time a ording greater security! thanheretofore against any abnormal operation.

The invention is not limited tothe preferred construction shown, whichmay be varied to a considerable extentwithin the scope of the appendedclaims. The invention is not necessarily limited to the valve having twooutlets for supplying air to both alcohol and water vessels. It onevessel were omitted, the outlet corresponding thereto would naturally beomitted or disused.

What I claim is:

1. In a torpedo, in combination with an air inlet pipe and a water andfuel vessel, an intervenlng air valve comprising a casing having, aninlet from said air pipe and outlets to said vessels, and a plungermov-.

able therein, normally closed to shut ofi said outlets, and movableunder air pressure to opentheoutlets and admit air to said vesse s.

2. The combination of claim 1, with a spring normally pressing saidplungerto closed position.

3. lnatorpedo, in combination with an air inlet pipe and a water andfuel vessel, an intervening air check valve comprising a casing havingan inlet and outlet, a'plunger mov- EBB able therein, having a portionclosing said outlet, a spring holding the plunger to such closedposition, and the plunger movable under air pressure to a positlonopening said outlet.

4. In a torpedo, in combination with an air inlet pipe'and a water andfuel vessel, an intervening air check valve comprising a casing havingan inlet and outlet, a valve plunger movable therein, having a pistonvsaid outlets, said plunger movable under air pressure to open saidoutlets.

6. A torpedo air check valve according to claim 1, afiordingcomparatively unrestricted passage to one outlet, and restricted passa eto the other outlet.

. A torpedo air check valve according to claim 5, having a constrictionat its inlet 1.

to check the first inflow of air.

8. In a torpedo, in combination with an air inlet pipe and a water andfuel vessel, an intervening air check valve comprising a casing havingan inlet and outlet, a valve plunger movable therein, normally closingsaid outlet and movable under air pressure to open said outlet, and ayielding stop for holding said plunger normally in the closed position,adapted upon entrance of pressure through such outlet to yield andpermit the displacement of the valve plunger to discharge such pressurethrough the valve.

9. A torpedo air check valve according to claim 8, such stop comprisinga sprlngpressed plunger normally arresting the valve plunger in itsclosed position.

10. A torpedo air check valve according to claim 8, having a springnormall pressing.

the valve plunger to its close position against said stop, and thelatter having a stronger spring adapted to yield to a sumcient pressure'enterlng through the outlet permit the displacement of the valve suchpressure.

plunger for dischar 'n In witness whereo ll my me.

WILLIAM DIETER.

ave hereunto signed

